The soft warmth of morning sunlight streamed through my window, casting golden lines across the wooden floor. The birds were already up, chirping away. The river outside flowed gently, reflecting the dawn sky.
I sat up in bed, stretched both arms above my head, and smiled.
'A new day… and this time, I'm not alone.'
After a quick wash and pulling on my coat, I stepped out into Magnolia. The town was already stirring—vendors unlocking stalls, fresh bread scent in the air, and kids laughing as they ran past.
————————————————————————————————
But none of that compared to what waited at the guild.
Fairy Tail.
The moment I pushed open the heavy doors, the usual madness greeted me.
Food flying. Spells misfiring. A brawl in one corner. Laughter in every other.
I smiled.
"Lucky!" Cana called, waving with one hand and flipping a card in the other. "Morning!"
"Morning," I said, sliding into a seat beside her.
Gray, shirtless as usual, gave a quick nod. "Settle in, or you'll get caught in the lunchtime food war."
"I'll take my chances."
Cana side-eyed him. "Gray… seriously, where's your shirt again?"
Gray blinked, looked down, and exclaimed. "I—uh… must've taken it off without realizing."
"Again?" Cana said, deadpan.
I raised an eyebrow. "Is that… normal?"
"Very," they both said at once.
To prove her own chaos, Cana drew a card with flair and slapped it down.
It glowed—then burst into a sudden spray of fire, shooting upward like a celebratory spark.
"Relax," she said casually. "Just a flare."
Gray shrugged, then formed an ice lance in one smooth motion.
"Ice-Make: Lance."
It shimmered for a moment before he dispelled it.
"Controlled," he said smugly.
Cana muttered, "Overcompensating…"
Just then, Wakaba and Macao walked by mid-argument.
"I'm telling you, extra pepper makes the flavor pop," Wakaba insisted.
"It makes the flavor explode," Macao retorted. "In the bad way."
Wakaba noticed me and grinned. "Kid! Welcome to the real madness."
He blew out a puff of smoke from his pipe and with a flick of his hand, shaped it into a dragon's head. The smoky image roared before popping.
"Smoke Magic," he said proudly.
Macao rolled his eyes, raised his palm, and summoned a clean spiral of flame, flickering steadily. "Flame Magic. Way more useful."
He extinguished it with a casual snap.
"Both of you have awesome control," I said honestly.
They nodded in satisfaction and wandered off.
The energy around me was wild, creative, chaotic—but driven.
And I thought: summoning beasts was flashy, but I didn't want to rely on randomness forever.
'If I had a huge mana pool, I wouldn't mind being a jack-of-all-trades,' I admitted to myself. 'But right now, I need to focus. Find something I can grow in. Something that fits me.'
"I want to learn something new," I said. "Maybe something different from summoning."
"You should ask the old man," Cana offered. "He's the best teacher around here anyway."
And that's exactly what I did.
Up on his platform, Makarov sat nursing a small cup of something that smelled strong enough to knock out a wyvern.
"Master Makarov," I called respectfully.
He looked down, amused. "Lucky. What is it today?"
"I want to learn another type of magic," I said. "Is there a place where I can study? Or someone who can teach me?"
His expression shifted slightly—not disapproving, just thoughtful.
"You don't waste time, do you?" he said, chuckling. "Come on. I'll show you something."
He hopped off the platform with surprising agility and waved for me to follow.
We moved through a quieter hallway behind the main guild hall, past a few locked doors, until we reached one with twin iron handles.
"This," he said, pushing it open with one hand, "is the Fairy Tail archive. Library, scrolls, spellbooks—collected from all over the continent."
Inside were shelves stacked with tomes, scrolls, even floating texts in magical display cases. The air smelled of old parchment, waxed wood, and the faint buzz of ancient magic.
"You won't find everything in here," Makarov said. "But it's a good place to start."
"Thank you," I said quietly.
He waved a hand. "Just don't blow anything up."
Then he left me alone.
Inside, the air smelled of parchment and old mana. Floating scrolls, glowing shelves, tomes humming with protective seals… I could feel knowledge humming in the air.
I wandered the rows for a while until one book caught my eye:
Light Control: Foundations of Radiant Magic.
'Light magic…'
It was graceful. Clean. Pure. Not just for fighting—but for protection, illumination, and, according to rare studies… even the potential for healing.
In a world where healing magic was considered lost, Light was the closest thing still known to modern mages. If I could study it—train it—maybe one day I could evolve it into something more.
'A support-type magic... That could help people when summoning isn't enough.'
I sat at a desk, flipped the book open, and began reading.
Chant structure, magical control diagrams, rune flow examples—it all made sense.
I closed my eyes, focused, and followed the breathing technique described.
Then I tried to channel energy through my fingertips.
Nothing.
I adjusted my posture, tried again.
Still nothing.
I flipped back to the diagrams and repeated the process slowly. Visualized the light. Focused on the mana.
Still no result.
I clenched my fists and silently opened my Skill Panel.
All of my abilities were listed: summoning cards, passive traits, and, of course, the Lucky Draw system.
I searched for "Light Control."
Nothing.
I tried to add it manually.
Error: Skill rejected. progression is locked due to Lucky Draw Talent.
The words hit harder this time.
Not just because I'd failed to learn something new.
But because a part of me had hoped I could help people—not just summon beasts to fight, but actually protect others. Heal them, if they were hurt.
This isn't an anime anymore. It's reality. People can die.
And since the world now revolves around Fairy Tail—and my existence—it's likely the plot has already begun to change.
But honestly? I don't care.
Even if everything changes… I'll do whatever I can to help my guild in time of need.
And now… even that path was locked behind luck.
Two hours passed before I left the archive.
Makarov sat outside on a bench, sipping something warm.
"Find anything good?" he asked.
"Just browsing," I said. "Haven't decided yet."
He nodded knowingly. "That's fine. Sometimes, magic finds you when you least expect it."
I gave a soft nod and walked back toward the guild hall, where voices echoed and laughter danced.
————————————————————————————————
That evening, beyond the southern docks of Magnolia, the tide pushed something small onto the sand.
A girl.
Soaked. Bruised. Her arms and ankles wrapped in rusty chains, her body covered in torn bandages. A ragged white eyepatch covered her right eye.
Her red hair clung to her face as she dragged herself just past the water's reach.
She had escaped.
The Tower.
The punishments.
The fear.
But not the pain.
but the guilt.
As she lay there—shaking, coughing, half-conscious—her thoughts turned not to herself, but to the faces of those still trapped in the Tower of Heaven.
Simon. Sho. Wally. Millianna.
They were still there.
She had left them behind.
Her eyes burned with tears as guilt pressed down on her chest.
And then… she remembered him.
Rob.
The kind man. The old mage who gave her hope. Who told her stories. Who taught her to believe in something more.
She remembered the symbol on his back. A mark of safety. Of freedom.
"Fairy… Tail…" she whispered.
Her fingers curled into the sand.
She didn't know where it was.
But she would find it.
For Rob. For her friends. For herself.
Because she had to keep moving forward.